This year, with your help, Fur Kids Foundation helped 122 families with pets in Campbell County, Wyoming with emergency veterinary care—granting nearly $23,000 in aid. Since we helped our first case in September 2012, FKF has helped more than 373 families in Campbell County, Wyoming and granted nearly $58,000 in aid.

In 2016, we helped pets like Bella, a 3-year-old pomchi who was diagnosed with Hemorrhagic Gastroenteritis; Buster, a 10-week-old Catahoula/border collie pup who was accidentally hit by a one-ton pickup; and Lola, a 5-year-old Snowshoe Siamese cat who escaped her comfortable home and was hurt while gallivanting about the neighborhood.

With you by our side, we know we can save more lives and help keep families and their pets healthy and happy. Please consider making a one-time or monthly donation that will add up to a BIG impact for animals and the people who love them.

If you cannot donate but would like to help out Fur Kids Foundation, we also need items to help the organization run smoothly. We have put these items on our "wish list". Things we need right now include:

Card stock (8.5 x 11), we use this to mail thank you cards, and create postcards for events

Copy paper (8.5 x 11 and 11 x 17), we use this for board meetings, and to create posters and signs for events

You can also volunteer. Fur Kids Foundation is a 100% volunteer ran organization, and we're able to help sweet animals and their families because of the dedication of our volunteers who plan and work fundraisers, promote the organization and support our community. Our volunteers are our heroes. Applications are available here.

On behalf of animals and their families in Campbell County, Wyoming, thank you for helping families during a time when they may not be able to afford adequate veterinary care.

This cutie is Shep, a 3-month-old Mini Aussie. Shep’s eyes had been bothering him quite a bit lately and his mom noticed that it looked like there was something on the outer part of his eyelid that was causing him some discomfort. She tried to clean it, but within a few days his eyes were red, swollen and there was a lot of gunk coming out of his eyes, so she took Shep to the vet where she learned that he had conjunctivitis—aka pink eye.

Shep’s mom, who has three other children to take care of, had been laid off for a while and just recently started a new job. She reached out to Fur Kids Foundation for help, and we were happy to oblige. She’s now on some medication, and is feeling much better.

Eye mucus in dogs is normal and can be caused by a number of things, including viruses and allergies. However, excessive discharge—especially when it’s yellow or a greenish tint—could be a sign of an infection, glaucoma or other eye problems. It’s best to speak with a vet to get at the root cause of your dog’s eye discharge because some problems can result in blindness or loss of an eye if left untreated.

Also worth noting is that human pink eye is not contagious to dogs or cats, nor can humans get pink eye from their pets. Check out this article from VetStreet on Conjunctivitis in Dogs and Cats for more information.​Fur Kids Foundation is grateful for the dedication of our volunteers and supporters who have helped local families stay happy and healthy, and together! If you would like to help Fur Kids Foundation continue to help families in Campbell County, Wyoming with animals, please consider making a tax-deductible donation. The money helps families during a time when they may not be able to afford adequate veterinary care. Check out more Success Stories.

Oni is a 2.5-year-old Ragdoll cat who wasn’t feeling well—he was sneezing, coughing and had a runny nose.

Oni’s mom was worried about him, but she had just moved into a new home and started a new job, so she wasn’t sure if she could afford an unplanned trip to the veterinarian. Thankfully, she heard about Fur Kids Foundation, and applied for help. We’re happy to report that Oni took a quick trip to a vet clinic and was put on some medication to help him get back to his playful self.

Just like humans, cats can get colds. When a cat gets a cold, or an upper respiratory infection/sinus infection, it’s a lot like when you get a cold. And, like in humans, a cold is caused by a viral infection that is followed by a bacterial infection. However, you cannot give a cold to your cat, and your cat cannot give you a cold. Symptoms include:

coughing or sneezing

dehydration

discharge from the nose and eyes (this may be watery or bloody, or thick and colored clear, yellow or green)

fever

loss of appetite

loss of energy or hiding more than usual

swelling of the eyes

Be sure to provide you cat with plenty of fresh food and water—perhaps even encourage them to eat more by putting out wet or canned food. You can also wipe away any discharge from the eyes and nose with a moistened cotton ball to keep them clean. A healthy cat can often fight the symptoms of a cold on their own; however, if your cat’s symptoms get worse, or if they are under 6 months old, be sure to take them to the vet in order to get better.

Fur Kids Foundation is grateful for the dedication of our volunteers and supporters who have helped local families stay happy and healthy, and together! If you would like to help Fur Kids Foundation continue to help families in Campbell County, Wyoming with animals, please consider making a tax-deductible donation. The money helps families during a time when they may not be able to afford adequate veterinary care. Check out more Success Stories.

Meet Bear, an unaltered 3-year-old Newfoundland mix who met with some wintery mischief.

During a recent snow storm (paired with our wonderful Wyoming wind) that left Gillette with some rather large drifts, Bear and his sister escaped out of their yard. Unfortunately during this excursion, Bear was hit by a car. Some good Samaritans saw Bear injured on the side of the road with his sister, but the dogs weren’t wearing proper identification. So, these wonderful people took to Facebook to search for Bear’s owner, and got lucky.

Bear’s mom is a single mother of with three children. When she heard that Bear had been hit by a car, and his sister was with him, she reached out to Fur Kids Foundation for help with emergency veterinary care. Bear was rushed to the vet clinic where it was found that he was just a little bruised and sore, and thankfully nothing major.

If your dog is every struck by a car, you must take them to a vet clinic immediately to be evaluated. Being hit by a car can often result in a broken bone, cause internal bleeding, cause the dog to go into shock, and many other issues that only a veterinarian can treat.

Millions of cats and dogs are lost each year in the United States. What's heartbreaking is that only 10-30 percent of lost dogs and only 5 percent of lost cats are reunited with their families because they had proper identification – either an ID tag or a microchip. Bear and his sister were lucky a good Samaritan searched for their owner on Facebook, and found them. For those who don’t have them: ID tags for collars can be found at nearly all the pet stores in Gillette, or your vet’s office. Please (please) take the time to get proper identification for your pet.

​Fur Kids Foundation is grateful for the dedication of our volunteers and supporters who have helped local families stay happy and healthy, and together! If you would like to help Fur Kids Foundation continue to help families in Campbell County, Wyoming with animals, please consider making a tax-deductible donation. The money helps families during a time when they may not be able to afford adequate veterinary care. Check out more Success Stories.

In December 2016, Fur Kids Foundation had 10 families apply for assistance, and we were able to help seven of those families—for a total of $1,650.74 given in aid. From January to December 2016, Fur Kids Foundation helped more than 120 families in Campbell County, Wyoming and granted more than $22,700 in emergency veterinary care. This is the first year that the Foundation has gone over its emergency veterinary care budget in order to help local families. From September 2012 to December 2016, Fur Kids Foundation has helped more than 373 families in Campbell County, Wyoming and granted more than $57,323.24 in aid.

Below is a rundown of the cases we provided assistance to in December:

This month shows that we are not always able to provide assistance to every family who requests help. This happens for many reasons. Sometimes the vet bill doesn’t end up being as costly as expected so the family tells us that they can pay the bill, sometimes the applicant doesn’t complete the entire application process, or sometimes the applicant exceeds our income guidelines. To learn more about our application process, please check out our Application for Assistance, and be sure to check out our Terms of Assistance near the bottom of the application. You may also call and speak with any of our Case Managers about the process at 307.363.1131 or email furkidsfoundation@gmail.com.

We are grateful for the dedication of Fur Kids Foundation volunteers and supporters who have helped these families stay happy and healthy, and together! When you volunteer, attend an event, or help us raise money by supporting the businesses who support us with promotions, these families are who you are helping. Thank you again for all that you do for the Foundation, and for families with pets in Campbell County, Wyoming.

Please take a minute to check out our Success Stories and read more about the families with pets that we help. The Fur Kids Foundation board of directors works very hard to make sure that the majority of the money we raise helps local families; in 2016, nearly 75% of the money we have raised was spent on emergency veterinary care. Please consider a donation to help Fur Kids Foundation continue to help families stay healthy and happy in Campbell County, Wyoming.

The Fur Kids Foundation board of directors wants to give a huge shout out to Elise Buhler and Bill Montgomery as the December 2016 Volunteers of the Month!

In December, FKF partnered with the Campbell County Fire Department for a Holiday Photo Session with Olaf, Santa, the Grinch and a handsome CCFD Fireman. For two hours, Billy (dressed as Santa Claus) and Elise (dressed as Olaf) posed with families for their holiday photos. (This duo also spent an hour dressed as these characters in November so we could get a few photos for marketing materials for the event.) As the children would come around the corner to see Santa and Olaf, the looks on their faces were priceless, and many of the photos turned out amazing! And, at the Holiday Photo Session, more than $550 was raised, and split between both of the organizations. We could not have held this event without these two volunteers dedication and support. The pictures have been posted on the Fur Kids Foundation Facebook page, if you want to see more.

Thank you, Billy and Elise for joining our pack! We’re so happy to have you as a volunteer. We’re always posting how paw-some our volunteers are, and we sincerely mean it. If you have seen a volunteer go above and beyond, please contact us.

Created in November 2011, the Fur Kids Foundation is a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization that provides education and aid to promote the well-being of animals in Campbell County.

Your donation saves lives. It goes to work helping animals in Campbell County receive adequate veterinary care during a time when their family may not be able to afford it. Please contact the Foundation to learn more or donate now using PayPal.

Author

The Fur Kids Foundation blog is written by board member and Founder Felicia. If you have ideas that you would like to see published in the blog such as concerns about pet-focused topics in the community or a funny story, please contact the Foundation. Enjoy!